A little wolf's cry
by Colourful Darkness
Summary: What happened if Hayley had a miscarriage in the pool? Hayley x Elijah.
1. Chapter 1

**A little wolf's cry**

The pain was like an axe splitting her stomach apart. The water around her was cool but did nothing to aid the pain she felt. She clung to Elijah in the swimming pool, clenching his shoulders, her nails digging into his shoulder. She vaguely heard him say her name over and over again. Hayley. Hayley. Hayley. She screamed, her body convulsing causing a splash of water to come up and over her trembling body.

Suddenly, she felt something wet and warm between her legs. Frightened she looked down to see blood in the water.

"No," she whispered. "No…no…no." The blood came faster, mixing with chlorine water and then suddenly she saw her stillborn baby. She screamed and screamed.

"It didn't work," she heard Rebekah say. "We failed."

Hayley pushed herself out of Elijah's arms. The physical pain had subsided but the emotional heartbreak was far worse. She waddled through the water, getting away from the damn vampires and that bitch of a witch. She heard Elijah call her name but she ignored him, and pulled herself out of the pool and ran out the gates and into the garden.

Her baby. Her baby. Her baby.

Her legs were trembling. Dead. Her arms started shaking too and her hands. Her whole body shook. Her face, her feet, her knees, her heart, every fibre, every cell, every nerve…

Hayley's knees buckled. She tried to take another step but she fell, fell into a garden bed with its beautiful flowers and grand statuettes. Dirt streaked her wet clothes, face and hands.

She tried to get up, but pain crippled her. She couldn't. Dead.

Hayley started to cry. She sat in the garden, covered in soil and cried. She felt broken and bruised like there was a deep dark hole in her chest, a bleak void that nothing would ever fill. All she had wanted was a family.

The tears fell fast and constant and she was losing her breath, sobs coming from her lips as though someone was tearing them from her. She was falling deeper, deeper into grief. She cried. Sobbed. Screamed. She couldn't breathe.

Gasping a large shaky lungful of air between powerful sobs, Hayley buried her head in her hands, feeling tears drip from her eyes and nose, streaming down her cheeks and running down her neck and hands. She wanted to stop the pain. She wanted to stop crying.

Until then she never realised how much crying hurt. Hurt her chest. Hurt her face. Her eyes. Everything hurt.

She cried.

Screamed.

Sobbed.

She couldn't stop.

The wind was howling. It was dark and cold and her whole body was shaking. She didn't know how long she sat in the garden for. It could have been minutes, hours or some other measure of time. The crying came in waves. Her eyes burned. It ached, her emotions. Burned and hurt. She rested her chin on her knees and hugged herself, letting the emotions claw at her and the tears burn down her raw cheeks until she wished she was a vampire, so she could shut it all off. Because she didn't want to feel anymore.

"Hayley?" She heard Elijah's velvet voice beneath the blanket of grief.

She didn't reply. She didn't even acknowledge his impending presence. He sat down in the garden beside her.

"Talk to me Hayley," he said.

Hayley didn't hesitate. She looked at Elijah, tears raking down her face.

"It h-hurts to breathe," she sobbed, her voice so incoherent with grief, that Elijah barely registered what she had said. "M-my b-b-baby is gone. Just gone. I won't ever get to see her, or hold her…or hear her laugh for the first time, or o –oh –" She choked on a strangled sob, her hand pressed over her mouth. Elijah could see her fingers trembling but she continued on, her voice wavering like a violent earthquake. "I just wanted a family, Elijah…I just wanted her. I would have lived an eternity as Klaus's prisoner if I could just have her…"

He pulled her to him then and she didn't fight him. She buried her head against his chest and let the tears rage on.

"I don't want to feel anymore," she said in a whisper.

"Emotions are a part of being alive," Elijah replied.

"Then I don't want to be alive."

Elijah flinched at her nonchalance but pulled her closer to him, his lips filtering across her wet hair. "It'll get better," he whispered. "I promise, it'll get better..."

**My first Originals fanfic. Reviews?**


	2. Chapter 2

**Because of all your beautiful reviews, I decided to keep going. Thank you. Your kind words inspire me to write.**

Hayley wasn't sure how long she stayed like that – crying in the garden, with the wind whipping her skin like harsh slaps. Elijah held her the whole time, soothing words of nonsense. A small part of her wanted him to go and to never come back – there was nothing left for him to say. Yet a larger part of her silently begged him to stay, hold her tighter and never leave.

"C'mon, Hayley," said Elijah softly. "You got to get up. You'll catch a cold in these wet clothes."

She couldn't get up. Her legs were like jelly, and all she could focus on was her pain, her grief. So when Elijah's sturdy arms scooped her up, bridal style, cradling her weak body against his sold chest, she didn't even attempt to protest. Too weak to fight him, she nested into his wet shirt and allowed him to carry her inside, his hoarsely whispered apologies and reassurance barely registering in her head. She was so very, very tired.

As Elijah took her to the guest room she had claimed as her own, her eyes struggled to remain open, the strain and loss of the day – the pass few months catching up with her. Finally, tired of fighting it, she let herself doze off. She awoke a few hours later, warm and comfortable, to a loud commotion coming from the living room. Downstairs, Klaus drank vodka, bottle after bottle, and then smashed them all against the wall, throwing them one by one, glass shattering everywhere, cutting his hands until they seeped red. Afterwards, he stood in the room, surrounded by wreckage. The bottles, all of them, lay broken on the floor. Klaus glanced down and around him, his wild eyes roving across the grand room. He smashed the mirror that hung over the sideboard, ripped the wallpaper down with his nails, and punched the wall over and over again until his knuckles bled and cracked. Standing in the archway, Hayley watched him smash a vase, followed by a few goblets, the glass shattering like fireworks.

"Klaus?" she said tentatively. He moved so fast, she didn't have time to blink. He threw her against the opposite wall, pinning her there, one hand snaking around the column of her throat, applying pressure that made her suck in breath.

"You lost the baby!" he roared. "YOU LOST OUR BABY!" A single tear slipped from her eye. Hayley's lungs burned, her mouth working like a fish on dry landing, sucking nothing but fear. The edges of her vision started to grow fuzzy. Panic flooded her veins with adrenaline. She struggled, clawing at the fingers sealed around her throat. She needed to breathe, but he was too strong. He was a hybrid. An original. "Klaus…" she choked out his name. "Please…"

Bam! Klaus was thrown backwards and fell into the vanishing cabinet with a loud smash. Hayley sucked in a large lungful of air. She could breathe again…

Elijah stood in the middle of the room, dressed in his customary suit.

"You will not harm her," he said calmly, looking down at his brother. Klaus's face was contorted with tears and fury that he looked partially demented.

"She lost our baby…" he repeated, "my own flesh and blood…" Hayley felt her own tears form, as he repeated, 'our baby,' over and over again.

"How dare you, for one minute blame Hayley," said Elijah. "Hasn't she gone through enough without your vehemence? This is no one's fault but Agnes and Sophie's –"

Klaus's eyes snapped into focus and he leapt to his feet.

"Yes," he said with such savageness that Hayley recoiled. "I will kill the witches. I will kill every one of them. I will kill anyone associated with them. I swear, in the end, II will make them wish they never knew what regret felt like." He turned and marched towards the front door, but stopped at the threshold, and looked at Hayley and Elijah, his face an abstract picture of brokenness, grief and rage.

"No one hurts my family," he hissed, "and gets away with it."

Without a backwards glance, he walked out the front door and slammed it behind him.


	3. Chapter 3

"I am so sorry," said Elijah, once Klaus was out of the house.

"Don't be," replied Hayley. "You shouldn't have to apologise on your brother's behalf." Elijah's jaw tightened, but Hayley continued on. "As much as it is a nightmarish reality, it gave me satisfaction to know that he did actually care about the baby."

"He cares more than he admits," said Elijah softly. "Probably more deeply than any of us, even Rebekah." Realising what he had said, Elijah stopped, and shook his head, "Hayley, I didn't mean that…it is you of course who is suffering the most loss, whose grief I cannot imagine…cannot even compare to Klaus's."

"Elijah can you stop treating me with kid gloves?" she said, not bothering to hide the annoyance in her voice.

"Sorry," said Elijah. Hayley grimaced. Sorry. She was sick of that word. Sorry for your loss. Sorry for saying that. Sorry. Sorry. Sorry.

"I'm going for a walk," said Hayley abruptly and she began to walk away.

"Hayley –"

Hayley spun and rounded on Elijah with celerity. "I really need to be alone, okay? Don't you get that? Don't you get that I need to grieve in my own way, just like Klaus does. Don't follow me; I want to walk alone…" And with that she left the house, hearing the sound of her footsteps and the loud echo of foolish regret. Why had she lost her temper? Elijah had been nothing but kind to her. Hayley had no idea where she was going. It was like she was walking without thinking; staring without seeing. Her legs carried her through the heart of New Orleans as though they had a mind of their own.

Hayley looked around in wonder at the strangeness and beauty of this supernatural city; ubiquitous buskers lined the footpaths, all trying to out-sing each other with their mega-microphones and thunderous guitars – it reminded Hayley of an awfully choreographed mash-up – and then there were the aggressive sales assistants, most likely vampires, who stood on the sidewalk, and tried to drag you into their store as you passed. There was a loud, rowdy group of nightwalkers standing outside a pub, and across the road, Hayley saw the introverted witches lingering outside cafes. Hayley strolled pass everyone with her head down. She walked until she reached the local park, where a mother and her child were playing on the swing set. Tears prickled Hayley's eyes and she tried to swallow the lump in her throat away. Her thoughts were distant. She closed her eyes and thought about what it would like to be a mother; to hold your DNA in your hands, to have someone to love implicitly and eternally…

She thought about Klaus, and how, like he had said, they really were similar. And then she thought of Elijah and his constant support, even in the midst of her raging hormones. It began to rain. Hayley gazed at the city. In the rain the pavement shone like silver and the river of water droplets shimmered like tiny diamonds. The streets became empty as people found cover. Hayley wandered through the dark labyrinth of alleyways, not caring if she caught a cold from the rain or is she was mugged by Marcel's obnoxious crew. Her heart felt numb, frozen and cold, just like her skin. Hayley made her way through a side alley. Water gushed down the gutters, spilling into the town drains with a gurgling noise. In moments, her t-shirt was drenched so badly that it looked black in colour instead of blue. The relentless rain chilled her to the bone but she didn't seem to notice it anymore.

"Hayley?" said a voice from behind her. Hayley froze and shivers ran down her spine. She knew that voice.

"Klaus?"

Klaus was standing in the middle of the alleyway, his light hair plastered to his face. They walked towards one another and met each other half way. She didn't expect an apology from him, and wasn't surprise when he didn't give one, and pretended, as usual, that he had not attempted to strangle her hours before.

"How…are you?" he asked her.

"I…" she hesitated, and then told the truth. "I'm not okay. How are you?" She began walking down the desolated street and he followed.

"I'm not okay either."

There was so much Hayley wanted to say to him; of how much she hurt, how sorry she was for losing the baby, and how, no matter if he felt like a monster, he would have made a great father. Hayley didn't know how to put her feelings into words; she never knew how to. So they walked through the jagged alleyways of New Orleans in silence. Hayley didn't know how longed they walked for. Minutes, hours perhaps…she did not know. Yet all too soon, Klaus turned to her and said, "Come on, let's go home."

The water had longed soaked through her shoes. Wiping her face with her hands, Hayley crouched down and took off her boots, feeling the coldness of the water run between her toes. Straightening up, she squared her shoulders as upright as she could, smiled at Klaus and together they went home.

As soon as she entered the house, she called Elijah's name. She wanted to apologise to him. No reply.

"Elijah?" she walked into the lounge, the kitchen…still no reply.

"Looks like he's left the house," observed Klaus, plopping himself on the couch. "Is there trouble in paradise, little wolf? Did you send my brother running for the hills?"

Hayley ignored Klaus's snide remarks and made her way into Elijah's study. It too, was vacant. Upon his desk were his journals; writings that Hayley had read many times during Elijah's absence when Klaus had daggered him. His most recent journal lay open on top, and Hayley sat down and read it, ignoring the guilt that boiled in the pit of her stomach. She found that it was a poem. It read

_Chasing flighted dandelions, tumbling and swirling like descending parachutes,_

_Metaphors of a thousand and one wishes, and as they fall, I hope one day they will be caught, because if we touch them, maybe someone will hear our wishes and the world will be happy again._

**Hope you all had a Merry Christmas! Hope you are liking this fic so far. Not sure whether to take an 'Haylijah,' or 'Klayely,' angle, but will probably end up doing a mixture of both. Thoughts? Comments?**

**Lots of love**

**CD**


	4. Chapter 4

Elijah returned home late that night, and Hayley was still awake when he entered her room.

"Hey," she said, sitting up in bed.

"Hey." He murmured, walking into her room and sitting himself on the edge of the bed she had claimed as her own.

"Where have you been?"

"I went for a long walk," he said softly.

"I see…" Hayley hesitated, "Look Elijah, I'm really sorry that I snapped at you, and –"

"You have nothing to be sorry for," he said. "Here." He thrust a cup of tea towards her. She hadn't until then realised that he had been holding the cup of tea all along. She took it and cradled the cup between her hands.

"Why are you so kind to me?" Hayley whispered. The warmth from the cup spread through her fingers like an infection.

"Because I believe whenever we are kind to someone, we are elevated just as much as they are," said Elijah. "So really I have selfish intentions for being kind."

Hayley snorted. "You are stubborn, sentimental and over-protective, but selfish? No, you are many things, but not selfish…I don't think that's possible for you Elijah."

He smiled at her. "I assure you it is."

She took a sip of tea and raised a cynical eyebrow.

"I am selfish," repeated Elijah. "I wanted Klaus's child to be born all for the hope it would redeem him, even if it meant its mother would be kept as an eternal prisoner; I didn't want Sophie to complete the harvest, because I needed Davina…and now Sophie has no family…tell me Hayley, is that not selfish?" He raved on as though he had been keeping it all inside. "Is it not selfish that I have feelings for my brother's girl? The mother of what would've been _his _child?"

Hayley stared at him, her mouth agape. Elijah averted his gaze and said quietly, "Sorry I shouldn't have said that." There was a pregnant pause.

"Selfishness is an integral part of humanity," said Hayley eventually, "But Elijah; honestly, you are the least selfish person I have ever had the pleasure to meet."

He smiled slightly.

"That's kind of you to say." She returned his smile, sweet and benign. After a while, Elijah cleared his throat and said, "I should let you get some rest. Good night Hayley."

He moved from the bed and headed towards the door. It was only when he reached the threshold that he heard Hayley call his name. He turned around and gazed at her inquiringly.

"I have feelings for you too," she said quietly, biting her lip. "And I think it's very selfish of me, not only because of the fact that Klaus knocked me up, but also because I think I have feelings for him too."

"I understand," said Elijah. "It's okay Hayley, selfishness is an integral part of humanity. Good night."

"Good night, good night."

Elijah closed the door softly behind him, leaving Hayley alone in the double bed. That was the first night since the baby's death that she did not cry herself to sleep. Instead she fell into a content slumber, her dreams revolving around the faces of two original brothers.

**Thanks for all your reviews and because of all your mixed ideas of who to ship, I'm going to do a mixture of both. Lots of love, CD**


	5. Chapter 5

The next night, Hayley slept uneasy. Maybe it had something to do with the heat, she didn't know. She tossed and turned, and rolled her pillow over, but to no avail did sleep come. It was about quarter pass midnight, when she saw and heard a figure climbing through her open window. She sat up with celerity, and threw off her covers, mounting up a scream, when –

"Relax love, it's only me."

Klaus was standing in her bedroom. It is evident, from where Hayley stood, that he has been beaten so many times. He was filthy, he was mattered, he was a sinner, of the most diabolical sort, and in his mind, he was utterly and helplessly unloved. At any moment, she feared that Marcel would chain him in shackles and parade him through the streets of New Orleans, so he would be known as the King that defeated an Original. Hayley wanted to ask what happened to him. Why his, once lean body, looked like a bloodied bruise, but she couldn't.

"Did your mother ever teach you to enter through the front door?" Is what she said instead.

Klaus smirked. "Didn't your mother teach you to close your windows at night?"

"It's hot," replied Hayley indignantly.

"Can't sleep little wolf?" Klaus leant against the wall, arms folded across his chest.

"Mmm," said Hayley. "I guess, it's the heat, and…I can't stop thinking about the baby…I was supposed to bring her to term, I was her mother, and she didn't even get a chance to live because my body rejected her…"

"I know that you are hurting," said Klaus, "but you need to stop blaming yourself. You never failed her. She didn't get the chance to live because of the witches, because of a war that you aren't even apart of…if it's anyone's faulting its mine…"

"I just wanted a happy ending." Hayley felt like a child as she said, but Klaus didn't laugh at her.

"There are no happing endings ever." Klaus lowered himself to the floor, and gasped in pain.

"What happened to you?" said Hayley, wide-eyed.

"It doesn't matter, my body is healing quickly."

"That's not the point, who did this to you?"

"I did it to myself," said Klaus so quietly, that Hayley barely heard him. "I went to the quarters and picked a fight with a few of Marcel's nightwalkers, and I didn't fight back, I let them beat me until I blacked out."

"Why?"

Klaus shrugged.

"I know why," said Hayley sharply. "You just want to remember, what it feels like to bleed, don't you?"

Klaus's lips curled something near a smile. "You my love are quite perceptive."

Klaus ran a hand through his matted hair, and his eyes fluttered open and closed, as if struggling to stay awake.

"Klaus," Hayley said, softly. "It's alright…we're going to be alright in the end, you and I."

"You are ever the optimist little wolf." His eyes were still closed.

"I chose hope," she said eventually.

"Good for you," he said. His eyes fluttered open and he stared at her. "I shall let you get to sleep," he said, but he made no attempt to move from the bedroom floor.

"Don't go," Hayley said thickly. "Klaus – stay."

His eyes fluttered shut and he leant his head against the wall. All his wounds had completely healed but he still looked like a man that had endured a thousand sleepless nights, and a thousand endless beatings.

"Okay."

Klaus sat in the corner all night, and Hayley didn't even remember falling asleep. But she remembered her dream. They were always the same, more or less. She was in the pool, holding her dead baby in her arms. There was blood. So much blood. She was screaming. Elijah was there. The water was cold. The nightmare started to fade and Hayley felt the scratchiness of the sheets beneath her legs, feeling it roughness graze her thighs where her pyjama bottoms had crept up in her sleep. There was a rough grip on her shoulder, shaking her. "Hayley! Hayley, wake up." She had the sensation of gravity pulling her up, as though she was tumbling from one dimension to another and she jolted away, looking around wildly.

Klaus was standing above her. His hair was astray and his hazel eyes were rimmed with sleep.

"You were screaming," he said softly, staring at her with a concerned expression.

"Oh man," said Hayley, sitting up and pulling the blankets off her legs. The room was dark with only faint moonlight squeezing through the windows.

"I'm sorry," said Hayley, looking up at Klaus. "I didn't mean to wake you."

"You didn't," he said.

Hayley leant her head against the head board and sighed as Klaus sat on the edge of the bed.

"You were right," she said.

"About what?"

"That there are no happy endings," she said. "Ever."

Klaus flinched. "Don't turn into me little wolf. Chose hope over darkness, love over vengeance." He stared at her unblinkingly. "Smile again Hayley, or so help me, I'll make you."

Hayley raised a flirtatious eyebrow. "How are you planning on doing that?" Her voice was cold, which was not what she intended.

"Flowers, chocolates, love letters…whatever typical girls swoon over."

"I'm not your typical girl," said Hayley, remembering how the bouquets from past relationships had all ended up in the bin.

"I've noticed," said Klaus, and for once he meant ever single syllable.

_A Klaus and Hayley chapter. What did you guys think? _


	6. Chapter 6

Hayley found Elijah in his study, fiercely writing in his journal.

"Why do you write so much?" she asked. He looked up at the sound of her voice, and shrugged.

"Habits have a strange way of keeping us stable," he replied.

Hayley smirked. "Klaus could take a leaf out of your book." There was a slight pause, and then Hayley blurted out what was on her mind – "Klaus came to my room last night…he was broken, bruised and beaten, and he revelled in it…he's broken Elijah…"

"Mmm," said Elijah. "He's fragmented, lonely, diabolical and fragile, but broken? Well sometimes I think he can never be broken, but other times I think that's he's been broken for a long, long time."

"She should have seen him last night," exclaimed Hayley, "he was an utter mess…"

"And I think you're the only one that can fix him."

The words filtered through Hayley's mind slowly, and then she said, "I don't think you can help some that doesn't want to be fixed."

"That's debatable," said Elijah with a small smile.

"But who's going to fix me?" For a moment, Hayley didn't recognize her own voice. She sounded like a scared, vulnerable little girl.

"I will," said Elijah standing up. He faltered at the stare she gave him. "I mean, I will try to, but to me, you don't need fixing Hayley. You are the most resilient woman I have ever met."

Hayley raised an eyebrow. "You're smooth Elijah," she said with a smirk. "You're really smooth."

He smiled and shut his journal and walked across the room to turn the radio volume up. _Looking Through the Eyes of Love_ was playing, soft and melodic.

"Dance with me?" Elijah said suddenly, holding out his hand.

Hayley shook her head.

"I don't do the whole dance thing," she told him, but he was already pulling her to the centre of the room, saying "Come on, come on…"

He led her to the middle of the study, in the space between the bookshelf and the desk, and they danced barefooted on the carpet. The song was playing at a gentle melody. A caress, a whisper…

Hayley and Elijah held each other close, barely moving, her head resting on his shoulder; her heart beating so fast, that she swore he could hear it pound against her chest.

The study lights grew brighter as night ascended, bathing the room in a golden glow. A new song began to play on the radio, and yet Hayley and Elijah were still swaying on the spot. Hayley lifted her head from his shoulder to look at him.

Elijah reached out to put a warm hand on each side of her face, and then, without warning, he leant down and kissed her. Hayley was taken aback, but pleased. It was a short, soft kiss, as light as a feather.

Elijah dropped his hands, and stepped back, embarrassed.

"Sorry," he mumbled.

"Don't be," Hayley said. Her lips were still tingling. She wanted him to kiss her again, so she took a tiny step forward.

"Elijah?" she whispered, gazing up at him. He still looked slightly embarrassed, and partially guilty. "Can you kiss me again?"

All of a sudden, his smile was as wide as a valley and his eyes shone bright.

For the second time, he reached out and placed a hand on each side of Hayley's face, tracing his thumb over her bottom lip. Her whole body was tinglingly as she stood on her toes and entwined an arm around his neck for support, whilst the other hand reached over and pushed his fringe away from his face. And just like that, they were kissing again. His lips were soft and tasted of mint. Hayley closed her eyes, giving in to the sensation and the feel of his fingers against her waist.

She felt like she was soaring as though she was a petal floating with the wind, weightless and free. She closed her eyes and thought of brilliant stars, dazzling fireworks, and blossoming flowers – all beautiful things, and it was in that moment – however long it lasted, seconds, minutes, or hours – in Elijah's gloomy study, surrounded by books and papers, Hayley realised this was the first time she had been truly kissed. It wasn't a game of mouth domination, like it had been on her one night stand with Klaus. It was just a kiss – mutual, sweet and glorious.


	7. Chapter 7

Afterwards, they held each other. Hayley could feel Elijah's gentle lips filter across her hair, down her cheeks, and back towards her lips, when suddenly – WHAM

Klaus burst through the door. For a moment he stood frozen in the doorway. She saw surprise flit across his features, followed quickly by disbelief, and finally replaced by anger. He stared at her, and then at Elijah, his eyes narrowing.

"Once again, noble Elijah gets everything," he snarled. For once Klaus looked downright vicious, "come to steal my girl, just like you come to steal my glory –"

"Your girl?" repeated Hayley, in a slight screech. "I am no one's property, you ill-mannered hybrid, and for your information –"

"Hayley, don't –" began Elijah, "please, just leave Klaus and I to sort out our differences."

Klaus smirked. "Yes, Little Wolf, please get the hell out of this insufferable study, so I can teach my brother a little lesson."

"Don't you dare hurt him Klaus," said Hayley, "I mean it! Lay a hand on him and I will, I will…" she faltered and Klaus just smirked, before pushing her out of the room and slamming the door in her face. Hayley reached for the knob and tried to yank the door open, but it was locked, so she began pounding the door with her fist.

"Open the damn door Klaus!"

Beyond the door, she heard rowing, crashes, the sound of flesh hitting flesh…

Hayley yanked the door knob again, and again. After a while, Rebekah came upstairs to see what the noise was all about.

"I would just leave them to it," she said softly. "They won't do serious damage to one another, but it goes to show doesn't it, that Klaus really cares for you, doesn't he? I never thought that was possible, my brother showing the slightest spark of love, but you've changed him Hayley, and I know you are conflicted between my brothers, but whatever you do, I'm asking you not to break Elijah's heart either."

Hayley gulped. "What do you suggest I do?"

"Come downstairs and have a drink with me," replied Rebekah. "Let the boys do their stupid boyish thing, and don't worry, they will be best of buds again in no time."

Reluctantly, Hayley did what Rebekah suggested, and she confided to the female original about her feelings, the loss of her child, her desire for a family, and when Hayley went to bed that night, she couldn't sleep, because both Elijah's and Klaus's faces swarm in the foreground of her mind. Yet sometime during the night, she heard the bedroom door creak open and in came Klaus.

For a moment, they didn't say anything, just stared at each other. Slowly, Klaus walked into the room and sat on the edge of the bed.

"What did you do to Elijah?" she asked eventually, dreading the answer. Was Elijah daggered again? She couldn't bear the thought…

Klaus did not reply. Instead he stared out the window.

"I don't get you Klaus," said Hayley, sitting up, her voice dripping with asperity, "you have everything, don't you see that? You have a family who loves you more than anything and you treat them like dirt! Do you know how long I've wished for a family? I want it more than anything in this whole world, and then I see you, and how much you don't appreciate Rebekah or Elijah, and I can't help think that although you've walked this earth for thousands of years, you know nothing about love or life, and you have everything, but you just don't see it…"

"Are you done, Little Wolf?"

"Not quite – here's the thing Klaus, I'm not going to tear you and Elijah apart, so I'm leaving tomorrow, going back to the life I had before I met you…"

Klaus moved so fast that Hayley's heart jumped in her chest. His hand came up – the fingernails broken and swollen – and he took tight hold of her hand, gripping her with force. "Don't go," he said thickly. His luminous eyes locked with hers, "Hayley- stay. Please."

At first Hayley was surprised by his actions, but then she leant against the headboard and stared at him, chewing her bottom lip in thought.

"If I stay," she whispered, "I'm not going to break Elijah's heart –"

"And what of my heart?" snapped Klaus.

"I was unaware you had a heart," said Hayley sarcastically, "and if you do, I am yet to find it. The night you knocked me up, that was the first time I saw you, the real you and I know who you are Klaus…you are not the feared hybrid; you're an artist, an enthusiast of life, a brother…I know you have a heart but I don't know where you keep it…and I know you know that I like Elijah, but here's the thing, I also have feelings for you because that night…you sparked something within me, not just because I carried your baby for a while, but because we are so alike…because we feel so alone in this world, even though love is all around us…"

"My, my," said Klaus slowly, "I didn't know you were so sentimental. Are you trying to redeem me just like Elijah is?"

"No," said Hayley quickly, "I'm trying to make you see that even though you and your family are immortals, that does not mean you can't be killed, and when you rage a war with Marcel, I wouldn't be treating your family the way you do, because one day you might wake up, and they will be gone, and you will find you don't belong anywhere anymore, just like me."

"Well thank you for your advice, Little Wolf, but we are the originals…we are undefeatable, and for the record, you belong here, you know that? You belong with us."

**A/N: So I know a lot of you are disappointed by the last chapter, but I ship both Halijah and Klayley, so it will be a mixture of both. Hope you like this chapter! Lots of Love - CD**


	8. Chapter 8

The three of them had breakfast together the next morning. No one spoke as they ate, and eyes flicked furtively from one person to the next.

"Well this is awkward," said Klaus eventually.

"You think?" snapped Hayley, who was still angry at Klaus.

"Tut, tut, where's the common curtsey?"

"I think we need to have a family conference," interrupted Elijah.

"Quite right," agreed Klaus loudly, "let's discuss our little wolf here."

"This is ridiculous," hissed Hayley, feeling more like an object every minute she stayed in this stupid manor.

"No, please let me speak first," said Klaus, "I know you are confused, Hayley, about who you are and who you want, but listen here, you are a remarkable woman, and that's something both me and Elijah agree on, but here's the thing, you may have feelings for both of us, but half of your feelings are wasted…I am not deserving of love, little wolf, I have never been; so here's what I want you to do, whatever the hell you feel for me, give it to Elijah, because as much as it kills me to admit it, he's the one who deserves it. He hasn't tried to strangle you against a wall, or kept you imprisoned against your will…he deserves someone like you, Hayley. I'm letting you go, because the only thing that has ever linked us was a baby that no longer breathes."

Klaus stood up; his chair skidded backwards.

"Klaus…" began Hayley and Elijah at the same time.

"End of conference," said Klaus harshly. "I want you two to be happy."

He began to walk away, and Hayley stood up.

"Klaus…" she called again. He stopped and looked back, but Hayley didn't know what to say, but she didn't need to know, for Klaus spoke.

"D'you know what I noticed about you first little wolf?"

"What?"

"Your eyes," Klaus whispered.

"Dashing aren't they?" said Hayley sarcastically.

"Yes, because they're just like mine."

"I noticed that too," said Hayley softly. Klaus smiled crookedly, before walking away without a backwards glance. Hayley was left alone with Elijah, who was still sitting down. It looked like he was in a state of shock.

"Well, that certainly was unexpected," he said eventually. "Hayley, listen to me, if it's Klaus you want go after him. I have felt love twice in my life, so if you truly believe that you and Klaus have something, go to him, and don't let me be standing in your path. I have loved, and with time, I do think I could love again, but you need to find out what you want. Not what Klaus's wants or I want. What you want."

"I don't know what I want," said Hayley. "I'm not very good at loving…"

Elijah kissed her forehead and said – "No one finds love easy. No one in the whole world, but once you find it, it's worth fighting for."


	9. Chapter 9

Hayley heard them fighting, the way brothers do. But it was more than challenging bickering. It was intense and loud, frightening and harsh. Hayley heard her name being yelled and she flinched.

"It's about Hayley, isn't it?" It was Klaus's voice.

"This is not about Hayley, this is about you and me – did you ever think that at times I just needed my little brother?"

"Oh, please Elijah, spare me your tender side –"

"I'm just saying, if Hayley is the way tearing us apart, you can have her, I don't care, I won't ruin my family for one girl."

"So noble Elijah," Klaus sneered, "but we are no longer a family, we don't know each other anymore, we are like passing strangers in this strange world, and I do try to reunite us –"

"You try?" repeated Elijah aghast, "are you kidding, you never try Klaus, I am the ne holding this fragmented family together by my simple ability to listen, but what have you done in the wake of returning to New Orleans but drink, party and prey on innocent victims –"

"How dare you, you are out of line brother!"

"I am out of line? I am consistently pulling you away from –" But what Elijah was pulling Klaus away from Hayley never knew because there was the loud sound of flesh hitting flesh, the sound of shattering and groans. Hayley cold picture it – Klaus attacking Elijah, just as he always did. The fight was over before she knew it, and Hayley was surprised at the victor's voice –

"My kindness is wavering –" There was a loud groan. Hayley ran upstairs and peeked through the partially opened door. Klaus was on the ground and Elijah was holding a sword to his chest.

"This is for Rebekah," said Elijah, plunging the sword into Klaus's chest, "This is for me," he jabbed the sword again, and Klaus groaned in pain.

"And this is for Hayley." Elijah gave the sword a final push as it sank deeper into Klaus's chest, "because you have not showed her the respect she deserves."

Without a backwards glance, Elijah left Klaus lying on the floor. He walked into the corridor and almost crashed into her.

"I'm sorry," he said softly, "I didn't want you to see that, anger just got the better of me…he won't die…I mean we can't die…I regret it already…help him if you want to…I don't have the composure to interact with him at the moment…"

And the he left, jumping the stairs two at a time. Hayley stood there for a moment, absorbing everything that had happened, and then she went to Klaus, not because she wanted to help him but because Elijah had asked.

Klaus was lying there, trying to pull the sword out but he couldn't do it himself. He struggled, cursed and swore at Elijah, his temper irate. Hayley took jerky steps into the room and knelt down beside him. This close, she could see every droplet of blood, the place where his shirt and skin had ripped and the sword had embedded itself deeply into his rising chest. Klaus's body was trembling but he stared up at her, his eyes never flickering away.

"Please take it out," he croaked, lifting a slow hand and pointing it to the sword. His fingernails were broken; likewise his fingers were swollen and caked with dry blood. "I can't do it myself."

"Klaus," she said, so softly; her voice quivering, "I don't think I can…"

Hayley saw the pain in his face; the way his eyes fluttered open and closed.

"I, I…" She leant over him, not realising how close she was t him. "I, okay, I will try…"

Her hands trembled as she reached and curled them around the hilt. She was scared, doubtful and angry.

Klaus gazed up at her, waiting for her to rip it out, like she said she would.

"Do it," he whispered hoarsely.

Hayley recoiled. "I can't."

"Give me your hand," he said. His voice remained soft, even through the pain.

Hayley let him take her hand in his and guide it back over to the sword.

"Just close your hand on it and pull," said Klaus. "Pull hard, just get it out of the way please, you don't even have to look little wolf."

That chastened her. She was the one who was supposed to be helping him, and there he was lying in a pool of his blood, probably in more pain then she could imagine, giving her soft words of reassurance.

"Okay." Hayley pushed away his hands; there was no time to be squeamish. "I will do it."

She didn't even give him a warning. There were no one, two, or threes…she just gave the sword a sharp tug. Pain flickered across his features, but the sword only moved an inch, and the blood began seeping thicker than ever.

"Again, little wolf."

This time, Hayley took note of the angle of the sword, changing her position, so she was braced on one knee and all of her clammy fingers wrapped around the sleek hilt. And then, for the second time, she pulled upwards as hard as she could.

Klaus screamed as the blade slid from his chest, its sharp tip black with blood. His head rolled to the side and the sounds he made were similar to that of a wounded animal. Hayley tossed the sword across the room. She was shuddering. She no longer felt sick. Instead she felt cold, like she had inhaled a bucket of ice.

Klaus touched the wound and raised his fingers, slick with blood, as if disbelieving Elijah had stabbed him.

"Very brave," he whispered. Hayley wasn't sure if he was talking about her or Elijah so she just stared at him. His body was healing quickly now.

"Do me a favour," she said, "be kind to Elijah, he loves you so much."

"Right."

Hayley began to walk away.

"Wait, Hayley."

She stopped in her tracks.

"Thank you," he said.


End file.
